The reliability of interconnects on ICs has become a major problem in recent years, due to the rise of complexity, low-k-insulating material with reduced stability, and wear-out-effects due to high current density. The total reliability of a system on a chip is more and more dependent on the reliability of interconnects. The growing volume of communication due to the increasing number of integrated functional units is the main reason. Articles have been published, which predict that static faults due to wear-out effects will occur more often. This will harm the reliability and decrease the mean-time-to-failure. Most of the published techniques are aimed at the correction of transient faults. Built-in self-repair has not been discussed as much as the other techniques. In this chapter, the authors will provide an overview over the state of the art for fault-tolerant interconnects. They will discuss the use of built-in self repair in combination with other approved solutions. The combination is a promising way to deal with all kinds of faults.
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